Loal NPO helps fight youth unemployment

Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator hosted a media tour of its facilities in Johannesburg on Thursday last week ahead of Youth Day commemorations.

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The aim was to give the public a glimpse of the organisation’s work towards alleviating youth unemployment.

Located in Braamfontein, the non-profit organisation supports about 3.5 million job seekers with skills and exposure to opportunities that helps them get employed.

Portia Simelane from Medowlands is one of many young people who have managed to escape the shackles of poverty, thanks to Harambee.

After finishing her matric in 2013, Simelane was not able to study further and could not get a job for three years. She even tried volunteering at the local police station but that didn’t last as she was not getting any income.

With her sister being the only bread winner at home, the situation was not getting any better for Simelane.

“We even opened a spaza shop where we sold small things like snacks and fruits so that we can supplement my sister’s income as the only bread winner at home,” she explains.

Things started changing for Simelane in 2017 when a friend told her about Harambee. “I joined Harambee as a job seeker and I went through a bridging course which took about eight weeks.

“From there I scored an interview with the organisation and joined the call centre team,” explains Simelane.

Over the six year she has been with Harambee, Simelane has risen through the ranks and is now a network experience guide.

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Her role now is to basically help other young people find jobs by helping them with their CVs, preparing for interviews and everything that job seekers need.

Not only has this helped change Simelane’s situation at home but it has also put her in a position where she plays an active role in tackling the country’s high unemployment rate.

During the media tour, Zengeziwe Msimang who is the Chief Communications Officer at Harambee said they have partnered with over 900 employer partners in various sectors in an effort to provide young people with employment opportunities.

This has resulted in about R17,5 billion in income for the youth who have gained employment thus far.

Assistance does not end with updating ones CV and preparing for an interview but they also help with clothes as well.

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If a job seeker is going for an interview and they don’t have something decent to wear, Harambee has a whole wardrobe dedicated to that, thanks to their donors.

Help is available for all job seekers across the country and it can be accessed free of charge through the SA Youth network at sayouth.mobi. This is a free mobile website which anyone can access via their smartphone and get access to all the resources free of charge.

Simelane encourages other young people to make use of the sayouth.mobi site and thanks Harambee Youth Employment Accelerator for the opportunities it has presented her with.